The Wedding Partner
by Sam-DaughterOfPoseidon
Summary: Percy and his friends meet a group of girls at a bar while they are having a bacholerette party. What happens when the pretty blonde girl catches his eye? And what happens when they all meet up at a wedding rehearsal? In Mortals!
1. Chapter 1

New Story

Percy's POV

My friends and I laughed as Evan told another joke. "Hey Percy." He said, getting my attention again. I looked up at my friends.

There was Evan,the jokester, Clark, the sensible one, Troy, the friend who had lots of one night standers with girls, Kyle, the one who decided to come to the bar for to celebrate his masters in culinary, and me, the crazy friend.

"I said I'm pretty sure that group of girls came here for a bachelorette party. " Evan said, pointing to a group of girls.

There was a girl who looked like a quiet and collected girl usually but had been introduced to the now empty glass of wine. There was another girl who had choppy hair and was laughing at a girl who I'm guessing was the bride.

The bride was downing shots with auburn haired twins. The bride looked Chinese, with long black hair. But the one out of the group of girls that caught my eye was the one sitting on a barstool.

She had long blonde hair, like princess curls, she was wearing skinny jeans and a three quarter sleeve peplum top with lace up high heel boots. She was just sitting on the side and rubbing her temple with a grin on her face.

She caught my gaze and sent a smile. She sat there for a while and then decided to come walk to us. "Can I sit?" She asked, pointing at our empty chair. I pulled it out for her and she sat down.

"Part of the bachelorette party?" Kyle asked, smirking. She laughed, making my heart beat faster, and said, "Sadly yes." We all laughed. "I'm Percy." I said, holding out my hand. "Annabeth." She said, shaking my hand with a smile.

The guys introduced themselves, shaking her hand. She watched over her friends. A guy went to talk to the girl that looked like she was usually quiet and collected. "Be right back." Annabeth said, got up and walked towards her friend.

She talked to the guy for a bit and he left her friend. She came back and sat down with a sigh. "What are you supposed to be doing?" I asked, laughing. "I'm watching over my friends. Making sure they don't do something stupid." Se said, shrugging.

"So you watching over the bride?" Clark asked. "Actually I'm watching over the bridesmaids. My friend Thalia over there, punk rock girl, can get a bit carried away with her shots." She explained, chuckling.

"So you're like fairy godmother?" Troy asked, smirking. "Bingo." She said and sat back. Her friend Thalia came over. "Annie!" She said. "Have a tequila!" She said, handing Annabeth a shot.

"Thanks Thals." She said, taking the shot glass and putting it on the table. "Say, how about ou go off the shots for a while. I will tell the bartender to bring you some vodka." She said, smiling at her friend. "Okay!" She said.

Once Thalia left, she called over a waiter. "Get Thalia a glass of water. If she asks for a vodka, say sure and refill her glass with water." She told him. He laughed and did as she said. Thalia sent her a thumbs up from across the bar. "She's drunk." She said, turning back to us.

We all laughed. "Do one of you guys want this?" She asked, holding up the sho glass. "You don't drink?" Kyle asked. "I drink, but not shots and not tonight. I cannot get drunk on the job." She said.

Troy shrugged and drank the shot. Thalia came pack and set a tray of five tequilas on the table. "Looked like you are actually drinking tonight!" She said, happily.

"Yip." Annabeth said. She left and Annabeth turned to us. She pushed the shots to the middle of the table. "Knock yourselves out." She said. "Do you seriously not have shots?" Troy asked.

"No, I find absolutely no pleasure in finding out how tequila effects my brain." She said. "Wait, you've never had a shot before?" Evan sked, shocked. "You have to try at least one of these." He said.

"Are you trying to tempt me?"

"Possibly."

"You're a bad influence." She said, chuckling.

"Look. I hate shots. I will have one if you do." I said. She eyed me for a while, then a smirk grew on her face. "Sure." We each took a shot. She didn't ate her eyes off mine as we each had a shot. I smirked, having tricked her.

I didn't mind shots, I just wanted to see what she thought of tequila. We all watched as she screwed her face up. "Oh my god." She said, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand.

"That's vile!" We all laughed. She ordered a beer and had a few gulps to make the taste go away. "Um, guy approaching auburn haired girl." I pointed out. She quickly got up and went over to them.

The guy looked her up and down and tried getting her to dance with him. She must have said something threatening as he backed away and left the bar completely.

"Ass." She muttered as she sat down with us. "What did he want?" I asked. "To take my back to his place." She said. I felt anger grow in me. I didn't know why though, I hardly knew her.

"Annabeth, can we leave before Thalia starts dancing?" The Chinese girl asked, walking up to us. "Sure." She said. The Chinese girl looked at us then smirked at Annabeth.

" Don't." she warned, getting up from her seat. Hr friend laughed and walked away. She gave us smiles. "It was nice meeting you guys. But I am of to go sleep before having to deal with Thalia's headache tomorrow."

She smiled at us, but hold her gaze longer with me. She gave me a smile then went to her friends and left. "Oh, she likes you." Evan said, nudging me. "What are you talking about?" I asked.

"You like her back." Troy said, nudging me. "Just because you guys have girlfriends, besides you Troy, doesn't mean you have to set me up with someone." I said, finishing my beer.

"Dude! She's hot!" Troy exclaimed as we payed and left. "Yeah, which means she probably has a boyfriend." I said. "You like her though." Clark said, smirking at me. "Maybe." I said, getting in my car. I smiled at the thought of her as I drove to my house.


	2. Chapter 2

Chp 2

Annabeth's POV

I smiled as I went through my penthouse and into my kitchen. I was still getting used to New York. I checked the time and saw that I had two hours till my friends wedding rehearsal.

I guess there is no harm in being early. I could walk around the gardens or something. I left my apartment and drove to the reception. I smiled as I remembered meeting Percy a few nights before.

There had been something about him that made me look back at him, smile more and hold his gaze longer. He was different.

I parked my Tesla and walked in through the reception area. There were the usual people there, same people who had helped us when we had booked a place here.

"Hi." I greeted the group of two guys and three girls. "You're early." Jessica said, smiling. I laughed and said, "At least I'm not late." They all laughed.

"I'm just going to be walking around the gardens for a bit." I said. "If you want us to make coffee or tea, just shout." Tony, the of the guys said.

"Um, is it possible if I could have some water?" I asked him, biting my lip. He smiled and nodded. "Thank you." I said, then walked out into the gardens.

I had decided to put my hair in a French braid as it as quite warm. I wore a summer dress and a pair of high heels. Lily had been trying to get me to wear high heels so I would be used to them for her wedding.

So now some of my shoes had heels on them. I looked around the place. There was the reception building. It looked al vintage but was newly painted cream.

It had a staircase leading out the small building with a one way driving lane for dropping people off. The print lot was behind the building. T lead right Ito the garden, that was filled with rose bushes.

"Hey." A voice interrupted my stream of thoughts. I looked up nd there stood Tony with my water. "Thank." I said, smiling and taking it from him. "So how are you?" He asked.

I had gotten a sign from him a while ago that he liked me. I pretended like I didn't know as I only saw him as a friend. "I'm good and you?" I asked. "Good thanks." He said.

He had brown hair with blue eyes. He was wearing his work clothes, a button up shirt with a tie, a pair of suit pants with fancy shoes and his sleeves rolled up to look casual.

"So what you been up to?" He asked, running a hand through his hair. "Nothing much. Had Lily's bacholerette party the other night." I said, shrugging. "And you?" I asked, smiling.

"Just work." He said, sighing. It was funny to see how he was slightly nervous when we talked. "You like this garden, hey?" He said, smiling.

I laughed, seeing him blush yet the corner of my eye when I did. "Yeah, it's so beautiful." I said, leaning against the railing as I looked out at the levelled garden.

"We were, planning on adding some more bushes." He said. I smiled widely. "Wow! I can't wait to see. " I said. "And we also found a little birds nest." He said, smiling.

"Where?" I asked, smiling. He stood behind me, resting his one hand on my let shoulder and taking my arms with his other. "Over there." He said, showing me where.

I could feel his heart beat against my back. It was kind of weird as I thought of him more like a brother and friend than a relationship type of guy.

I felt his gaze on me, so I looked up. I looked into my eyes. I cleared my roast and looked down. He pulled away from me and rubbed the back of his neck. I saw his cheeks go bright red.

Percy's POV

I laughed at Evan as we walked out of the parking lot and towards the front entrance. Evan, Clark, Troy, Kyle and I were all going to be partners for the bridesmaids.

We saw we had a few minutes I'll it started so didn't rush. When we came around the corner, Kyle said, "Isn't that Annabeth?" I looked up, following their gaze.

I felt my heart drop a little. "Woah, he's stealing your girl. Go get her back!" Troy said, nudging me as we all slowed our pace. I watched as the guy showed her something.

She cleared her throat and moved away from him. We could here some of their conversation. "So I finish here at three. Maybe we can go to the Sundowner bar." The guy said.

"I'll have to see what I'm doing, still tuning to settle in down here in New York." She said. She looked up and saw me and the guys. Troy nudged me aain.

"Stop it." I hissed I him. She gave me a smile. The guy turned around to see who she was looking at nd his gaze hardened when he saw me looking at her.

We made our way to them. "Tony, o flirting with clients." I girl teased from the front door hen went back inside. Annabeth chuckled as she raised an eyebrow at 'Tony' who blushed like a tomato.

"Call me if you're free." He said. She gave him a smile, the nice person she is, and he left with a slight wave. As soon as he was through the front doors she laughed.

"Who's Prince Charming?" I joked. She smiled, showing her teeth. "Ha ha, real funny." She said, sarcasm dripping off her tongue. "S what brings you here? Gettin married?" She asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

We all laughed. "Hell no." Tony said, wiping tears from his eyes. "I could ask you the same question." Kyle joked. "My friend, Liy, is having her wedding rehearsal." She said.

"The grooms name doesn't happen to be John." Clark asked. "Yes, why?" She asked, eyeing us. "Well we're here for him." Troy said.

She chuckled. "This is going to be interesting." She said. "Annabeth!" We heard someone shout. We all turned to see Thalia with the auburn wins and the quiet girl with amber eyes following behind her.

"Well hello to you too." Annabeth said, raising her eyebrow. "Hazel said you let me get drunk. Tell me I wasn't drunk at the bar the other night." Thalia said.

"Extremely drunk." Annabeth replied. "Annabeth! What don't you get about watching over us!" She said, her eyes wide.

"I was watching alright, took a couple pictures too. I didn't say I was going to make sure you wouldn't get drunk, I was just making sure you didn't wake up the next morning in some weirdos bed." Annabeth replied, smirking.

"I would so kill you right now." Thalia said, pacing. "But you won't because you love me and I'm just that awesome." She said, non chalantly.

"I can't believe I agreed to being a bridesmaid." She said, pacing still. "Chill Thalia." Hazel said. We all enjoyed ourselves as Annabeth laughed and Thalia paced and Hazel tried calming her down and the auburn haired girls played on their phones.

"Amber, Jane." Hazel said. They looked up from their phones. "I love you girls, but if your aunt see's you playing on your phones, she'll get upset. They nodded and interested themselves with catching up on gossip.

"Um, Annabeth? Who are they?" Thalia asked. "These are my friends I met at the bar when you were drunk, also Johns friends who I'm guessing will be our partners." She replied.

"I'm here! I'm sorry I'm late!" The girl with choppy hair said, running towards us. "Smashing faces with Jason, were we now?" Thalia said, smirking. Piper rolled her eyes. "No, Thals." She said.

"Annabeth, did you say yes to Tony?" Piper asked, smiling at her. "Piper, I don't want to date your brother!" She said, rubbing her temple. "But he really likes you! It will help you get over Luke?" She said.

Anabeth stiffened a bit at that. "I was over him long ago Pipes." She said, her voice more serious. I wandered what happened. Thalia whacked Piper's arm and whispered, "Stop it! You'll make her upset."

A car pulled up and Lily and John came out. "Sorry we're late. Traffic." He said. We all greeted each other and went into the reception place. "So we'll start with the partners." Lily said, getting out a page.

"Evan and Piper. Clark and Hazel. Troy and Amber. Kyle and Jane. Percy and Annabeth." She said. My heart did a cartwheel. Annabeth smiled up at me.

"Thalia, you'll be walking with the little flower girl." She said. "So, lets start!" John said.

~ One Hour Later ~

We all walked out the building and towards the parking lot. I caught up to Annabeth. "Hey." I said. She smiled up at me. "Hey Percy." She said. "I'm going to go to this cafe close by for lunch. Do you want to join me?" I asked.

"Are you asking me on a date?" She asked, smirking at me. "Depends." I joked. "I would love to." She said, smiling. "I'll see you in a bit." I felt my heart flutter as she walked towards her car.


	3. Chapter 3

Chp 3

Annabeth's POV

I smiled as I saw Percy in the pub. He looked up and smiled at me. "Hello." I said, sitting down. "Hey!" He said, happily.

"What can I get you to drink?" A waiter asked. We both ordered a beer. H went to get us them and came back. "So." I said, taking a sip of my beer.

"What do you do?" Percy asked. "I'm an architect." I said, proudly. "And you?" I asked. "I'm a marine biologist." He said, smiling. I nodded my head in appreciation.

"So when did you move here?" Percy asked. I smiled. "About two weeks ago." I said. "Finished my studies in San Francisco so moved here to be closer to my old friends."

He smiled and took a sip of his drink. "I knew you must have been from California." He said. "And why is that?" I asked. He chuckled and looked down at his hands.

"Well you have the look." He said, emphasizing look. "And what is the 'look'?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You know, tan, blonde hair, slim and athletic body. The only hing that would say otherwise is your eyes." He said, looking backup at me. I chuckled. "Flattery? I thought this was a kindly gesture?" I said.

"Ready to order?" The waiter asked coming back to us. "I'll have a chicken salad." I said. "Burger nd chips please." Percy said. The guy wrote it down and left.

"So I you going to take up Tony on his offer?" He asked, smirking. I rolled my eyes but smiled. "No, I'd much prefer or dating my best friends brother." I said.

He chuckled. "And you? I thought you would have the girls gripping at your t shirt." I said, smirking. "No, not in a relationship." He said, smiling.

"I find that hard to believe." I said. "Besides my good looks, charms and sense of humour." He said. "Recently learnt you're cocky too." I joked. He laughed. "I'm just joking." He said.

"It's all true." I said, shrugging. He smirked at me. "Flattery? I thought this was a friendly gesture?" He mocked. I laughed nd he joined in.

Our meals came and we ate. We payed our portions and left. I started walking towards the park and he followed. "I have never met anyone like you." He said, breaking the silence.

I smiled down at my feet and looked at him. "Why is that?" I asked. "You are smart, pretty, have 'the look', have an amazing sense of humour and yet you're still level headed." He said.

I felt my cheeks heat up a bit and looked away from him. "I try." I said. He laughed and looked down at me. "You don't have to." He said.

I smiled at him and we just walked. We found our way back to the car park. "We should keep in touch. I'll call you the next time I go out for a beer." He said, smiling and handing me a piece of paper.

"I'll send you my number." I said, smiling at him. "I'll see you soon." He said. I gave him a small hug and we left.

I kept thinking about him while I drove home, when I had a shower and when I was sitting on my couch and eating Chinese take out. Why was he getting my trust so easily? And why did it actually feel real when he said those things bout me?

* * *

**I apologies for the short chapter! I will write longer ones, promise :)**


	4. Chapter 4

Percy's POV

I hadn't seen Annabeth in a week. But it had started to eat away at me. How was she doing this to me? Did she even realize what she was putting me through?

She made my heart buzz when I saw her numberin my contact list. She made my brain melt when I thought about her, my head screaming hat I wanted to see her.

But why? I hardly knew her, yet she felt so important to me. I sat on my couch, staring at her name on my phone. I couldn't help it, I pressed the call button.

"Hello?" She answered before I could register it. "Hey Annabeth, it's Percy." I said. "Oh, hi Percy! What's up?" She asked, her tone joyful. "Wanted to know if you wanna meet me at the Sundowners for a drink?" I asked.

"Of course, I'll see you in twenty minutes." She said, then hung up. I smiled as I changed into my favorite green t shirt and put on my leather jacket. I grabbed my keys and left my penthouse.

It was a five drive from my penthouse. When I got there, I parked outside and went in. I spotted Annabeth at the bar wearing her skinny jeans, high heel lace up boots, a long sleeve grey top and a leather jacket.

Her hair was down, making me swoon a bit. I walked over to her and said, "Hey." She looked up and smiled. She gave me a hug and we sat down. "How you?" She asked. "Good and you?" I asked. "I'm food, thanks." She said.

"What you drinking?" I asked. "A beer." She said, holding her glass up. "I'll have the same." I said to the bartender. He got me my drink and we sat in silence for a bit.

"So what can you tell me? You agonized me without being able to see your cheerful face all week, there must be something you can tell me.?" She asked, a smile on her face

"Well I started a new project, visited my mom and her husband Paul, and uh-" I trailed off, feeling my heartbeat quicken as she looked me in the eye. I was saved my her chuckling and looking down. "Sounds ever so hard." She joked.

"And you?" I asked. "Well I had to look after two interns, started a new sketch of a building, had an intern spill their coffee on it, had to restart it, got an email from my dad saying he was doing well and that Helen was sick, the usual." Se said.

I laughed and smiled at her. "We should do this every Friday." I said. She nodded and smiled at me. "The foam party is starting!" One of the bartenders announced. People cheered and went outside. We were pulled along with them.

We laughed as we saw people running around, covered in foam. "Are yu serious?" She asked, clutching her stomach as she laughed. We went back inside, only a few people had stayed inside.

We sat back down in our seats and laughed. "Aren't you two going to go join the party?" The bartender joked, smiling. "I'm good." Anabeth said, smilin and holding her hands up in surrender.

The guy put a can of whipped cream on the other side of the bar, out of Annabeth's sight, and sent me a cheeky grin. I sent one back and picked it up. I sprayed some on Anabeth and she laughed. "Percy!" She said, in between laughs.

She wiped some off her top and put it on my face. I laughed as she got hold of the can and sprayed me with it. She put it down, looking triumphant that I was more covered in it than she was.

I smiled evily and she noticed. Before she could run off after standing up, I grabbed her around her waist. "Percy!" She said, laughing. She turned in my arms and laughed.

She was covered in cream and so was I. She chuckled and wiped some of the cream off with her finger. "Not bad." She said, tasting it. I laughed and she did too. She got some napkins and wiped the cream off of her.

We payed and left, laughing as we still had some cream in us. With some cream on her cheek and her jacket, she couldn't have looked better. "Am I good?" I joked, pointing to my face.

She smiled nd came up to me. She wiped some away from the side of my mouth and smiled at me. She walked backwards and urged me to follow. We walked down the street, watching the street acts.

We walked, hands in our jacket pockets and watched the acts. "Hey guys!" A voice interrupted us. We turned and saw Annabeth's friends, Hazel, Piper and Thalia. "Hey!" Another voice said.

We all turned and saw my friends, Evan,Troy, Kyle and Clark. "Wat you guys doing?" They asked. "We just went out for a drink." Annabeth said, smiling. My friends smirked at me, and I wished that Annabeth hopefully didn't see.

"Tony would be disappointed." Piper said, smirking at Annabeth jokingly. "So can we join you guys?" Evan asked. I looked at Annabeth and she shrugged. "Sure." I said. We all ended up going back to the Sundowner.

The bartender smirked at us as we walked in again. "You guys want the can?" He asked, holding up the whipped cream. We both blushed as our friend's asked him to tell them why. "So you two have had some fun?" Thalia joked, smirking at us.

"Yes, it was delicious." I joked. Thy all laughed and we sat at a big table. I felt my skin tingle as I brushed legs with Annabeth. We all ate our meals and shared a few jokes.

On our way out, Annabeth and I walked a bit further ahead as we walked down the street owards a park. "Sorry about my friends, they're are a bit nuts." She said. "Don't apologize, it's not our fault that we have such crazy friends." I joked.

She laughed. "They've just been trying to get me someone to date. That's why Piper is joking about hooking me up with her brother." She said. I smiled and looked down at her. "It surely can't be hard for you to get a guy though?" I asked.

"It's not that I can't, it's just that I can't find someone who would appreciate me." She said. I furrowed my eyebrows and asked, "What do you mean?"

"When someone first sees you they think, 'Oh look, she's a blonde she'll be dumb and rich, she has a tan blah blah blah'. They never think about you actually having a life, you being different to girls so are actually desperate that they'll date anyone." She said. I thought about it, taking in her words.

"I just want someone to see me for me, not the Californian girl." She said. I looked at her in thought. "I probably sound crazy." She said, chuckling. "No, I think you're right." I said. She looked at me, calculating my expression to see if I meant what I said.

"You need to have someone that is going to love you for you. They will want to come home to you, say they love you and mean it." I said, looking at some of the couples in the park.

"When I first saw you, I didn't think like that. I saw a person looking out for her friends, someone with a heart. You don't get many people like that." I said. She looked at me and I saw an indescribable emotion stay on her face. Was it respect? Care?

"Thank you." She said, the expression still on her face. "When I realized that my ex didn't love me, that he wanted my money, I was confused." She said, looking ahead of her. "I thought how could I have been so stupid to have let my guard down, not see who he really was."

"Everyone makes mistakes." I said, trying to get her to look at me. "I made a big one, wasted part of my life." She said, meeting my eyes. I saw the slight bit of anger in her eyes. "I believed him." She said.

She looked down at her feet and sighed. "Annabeth, it's just made you stronger. Don't think if it negatively. Yes, he did something horrible and you fell into the trap, but look, you managed to find the exit." I said, my voice understanding.

She looked at me. "You had your heart broken." She said. "Yeah, by a girl once, but losing my dad was worse." I said, taking a shaky breath. "I'm sorry." She said softly. "It happened a long time ago." I said, wanting to get off the subject.

She looked ahead of her again. "Annabeth, It's fine to feel angry that it happened. But you also have to try to accept that it did." I said. She was quite for a bit. "I know." She admitted after a while.

"You'll be fine." I said, giving her an encouraging smile. She smiled back at me. "When did you become a wise man?" She joked. We laughed for the first time in a little while and turned to see our friends out of sight. "They ditched." I said.

We walked back to our cars and stood near them. "Goodnight Annabeth." I Said, smiling as I gave her a hug. She kissed my cheek and pulled away. "See you soon." She said, then drove away.


	5. Wasted time

Annabeth's POV

I smiled when I woke up. I still felt his smooth skin against my lips. I imagined having him close to me, kissing his soft lips...

He was interesting, so much more different to other guys. He had talked about my feelings, what had happened to me, and I had been able to know he understood what I was going through.

When my door bell rang I got up and went to answer it, hoping it would be Percy. But when I opened the door, I saw the one person I was trying to avoid.

"Good morning Tony." I said, giving him a smile. He smiled. "Hi Annabeth. " he said. "Can I come in?" He asked. I nodded and moved aside to let him in. I went to make coffee and he followed. "What's up?" I asked.

"I wanted to know if, when you're free, we could go out or something?" He asked. He looked hopeful. "I-" I started. He took my Han and said, "Annabeth, I really like you. Maybe we could try getting closer to each other." He said, moving towards me so we were a breath away.

"Tony, you're really-" I started but got interrupted with him saying, "I love you." It really got at me. "Don't tell me that, because you don't mean it." I said, controlling my anger and moving away from him. "I don't want to go out with you, I never did and never will want to."

He nodded and left. I sighed and fell back onto the couch. I called Piper.

"Hey Ann! What's up?"

"Your step brother came over to my place, said he loved me."

"Oh my word! That idiot! I tried telling him I was just joking that you liked him. I'm so sorry."

"It's fine." I said.

We talked for a while and then hung up. I got up and decided to walk around town for a bit. I got my keys and left my penthouse. I walked down the street and went into a few shops. I got a NY top and a new pair of running shoes.

I went and sat down in a cafe. I ordered a Coffee and sipped in slowly as I watched the people pass by outside. There was a middle aged couple walking with a small boy and girl.

They pulled their children close as the crossed the street. They were quite well dressed, so I guessed they were wealthy. And they looked happy too. They ame into the cafe I was in.

They smiled and made their children giggle. I smiled and looked away as I thought of the young family. The way the parents loved their children, the way the children looked care free, the way the couple looked with love at each other.

It was something permanent. I had started to love architecture because I thought it was the only thing that would be permanent. But now I'm thinking about it. Could love really be permanent?

Can both ends of a relationship, a marriage be permanent? Loving? Is it actually possible. I guess when I found out about Luke, I was blinded in love.

I had loved him, treated him well, thought he was my everything, excepted his promise ring. But when I realized he wanted my money, and I left, I knew I was the only giving end in our relationship.

It seemed those five years I was with him, I was the only one giving. Giving all I had, presents, an apartment, my love, my trust. And it was all ripped away from me.

I mended my heart, forgetting that only buildings could be permanent. I put my walls up, to allowing myself to open up to strangers. But I met Percy. And he's helping me pull the walls down, reveal my emotions, show who I am.

And I think I like it. I think I like him. I think I an possibly build something strong, out of my love. But I'm going I need Percys giving side as well, the structures, the cement, the bricks, the guys.

I need everything to hold it together and keep it in one piece, because if it tumbles down, burns and crashes, I won't have any more strength to hold myself up. My strength only went so far till it broke and I sat, feeling numb and angry at myself.

And it was all his fault, Luke's. He had led me into the trap, sat wi me in his arms, told me he loved me. He had made me see all the wasted opportunities, wasted memories, wasted time.

And when I did, it hit me like a freight train. But my heart seemed to mend much faster then my dignity and pride, something that only healed after a few yars as my heart had healed after a few weeks.

Am I willing to give my heart another shot at being taken? Or am I going to have to keep it on hold to avoid having it torn apart? Will the pain I put myself through, telling myself how stupid I had been, finally go away? Will my self conflict leave me?


	6. Chapter 6

Percy's POV

I walked into the pub with my friends. We sat on our usual side if the bar. Troy had picked the place, saing there was going to be a live music act. It was local people singin any type of music.

"This is going to be a great night." Kyle said, and the guys exchanged glances. I decided to leave them, no think about what they were planning. We ordered beers and relaxed, watching the band playing.

I realized what there plan was when I saw Annabeth and her friends come in. She spotted me and laughed. Her friends must have planned with mine to try and get us together.

Annabeth tried walking back out the door but Thalia pulled her back. They sat on the other side of the bar. I smiled at her and she would send me smiles and winks. "You going to go over there or do we need to escort you?" Troy asked.

I saw Annabeth stand up and walk to the bar to order a drink. Clark and Evan practically pushed me off my chai and made me walk over to her. "Hey." I said. "Percy!" She said, giving me a hug. "What a coincidence to see you here." She said, sarcasm dripping from her voice.

"I know right." I said. She ordered a drink and waved as she made her way back to her spot with her friends. I did the same. "So? What happened?" Clark asked. "Nothing." I said. We all laughed as we saw Piper trying to fix Anabeths hair, even though there was nothing wrong with it.

Annabeth would slap her hand away. Piper gave up after a while. Thalia and Hazel dragged Annabeth to where everyone was dancing, and Piper joined. "Go get her." Troy said, the guys pulling me up and them locking me off as we made our way to the dance floor.

Annabeth smiled nd chuckled as we found each other. She soon pointed out all of our friends too lost in listening to music, talking to someone or ordering a drink. She grabbed my hand and pulled me out the pub. We laughed as we ran out the pub and down the street towards the nearest park.

We wanted to distance ourselves from them. There were fairy lights in most of the trees and acts scattered round the park. When we finally stood running when we got near o a group of people watching an act, we realized our fingers were laced.

She looked down at our hands then back up to my eyes. I cupped her cheek with my free hand and kissed her. The music being played by the saxophonist disappeared as she kissed me back. It was like being transported o a different place.

Hr free hand cupped my face, pulling it slightly towards her as we kissed. We pulled away and looked at each other. There was clapping and we turned to see the people who were watching the act, smiling at us. One person whistled and we both laughed.

She smiled at me and kissed me again. It was shorter but just as perfect. "Annabeth." I said, softly against her lips. She smiled at me and we started walking back to the pub. "So now what?" I asked, our fingers still laced.

"Depends." She joked. "I promise I won't mess this up." I said, smiling at her. "Should we tell them now?" She asked. "Maybe when we leave, a goodbye kiss?" I joked.

She laughed and said, "Sure." She took her hand out of mine and we went inside the bar. I went to my friends. "Did you kiss her?" Kyle asked. "I was going to but then she was greeted by this old lady and we came back here." I said, sighing dramatically.

Evan groaned and let his head fall onto the table. "Well that plan failed." He said. I tried to keep my laughter in. We all had another drink and left just as the girls were.

Annabeth and my car were parked right next to each other. "So we'll see you guys soon." Hazel said, smiling as we all started to slow down as we got into a group.

"Well I'm tired, I'll see you guys sometime next week." Annabeth said. She turned and gave me a kiss.i returned the kiss and pulled away, smiling at her. We walked to our cars, leaving our shocked friends inthe parking lo as we drove away. I felt my heart bounce about and the smile plaster onto my face as I tasted her honeymelon lips.


	7. The wedding

Percy's POV

I fixed my tie as we were getting dressed. John looked really nervous, I guess I would be too. "It's going to be fine." I said, watching as he adjusted his watch for the eighth time. He chuckled and looked up at me.

"Easy for you to say, you're not getting married." He said. We all laughed and carried on getting ready. "So you and Annabeth still together?" Troy asked, tying his shoe laces. "Wait, you and Annabeth are dating?" John asked.

"Yes, we are still dating, and yes we are. Why?" I asked, shrugging. "You know about Luke right?" He asked, warily. "Yeah, of course." I said. "Who's Luke?" Lark asked.

"Her ex, dated her for her money." John said. "He's an idiot." I muttered. "Touchy." Evan said, smiling a bit. Clark walked around the room, as he had been the first to get ready. "Why would someone do that to Annabeth though? She's seems really nice." He questioned.

John had known her longer and heard about it from Lily so he decided to answer. "Her dad owned a whole lot of businesses. This Luke guy realized if he got Anabeth to date him, then her to marry him, her father would give him some businesses. About a week or two before she found out, her father had already given him two businesses."

The guys looked at me. "She talk about it?" Kyle asked. I looked down at my watch then said, "The first time I went out for a drink with her, she told me about it. What was bad was that she believe now that she wasted her life on him." I said, looking in front of me.

"But since we've been together, she hasn't mentioned it at all." Evan nudged me. "All is forgotten when you came along." He joked. We all chuckled then got up. "Let's go." I said, and we all left for the church.

When we got there, we were an hour early. Guests soon started arriving. John said he would go through a bit before the girls arrived. His best man, Frank, arrived a bit after us.

"Hey." He said, greeting us. As we were all talking and greeting guests, the guys looked over my shoulder and said, "Damn." Saying it under their breath, but drawing the word out.

I turned to see what they were looking at and saw Annabeth come through the door. She smiled and walked towards us. I gaped at her. She had a above the knee length soft yellow colored dress, silver platform heels and her hair was left down her back, one piece tied back with a special clip.

"Stop catching flies." She joked, pushing my jaw up. "Sorry I'm so early, one family in one room with five bridesmaids, not a lot of air." Se said, fanning herself out. "Oh, that's fine." John said, smiling. "Annabeth, you look great. And you're almost as tall as me in those shoes." I joked, still having to look down a little bit.

She laughed and straightened my tie. "You don't look to bad yourself, either of you." She said, smiling at my friends. She fluffed my hair a bit and I laughed, pulling her hand away. "I'm fine, don't stress." I said. "I am not walking down the aisle with a groomsmen that looks untidy." She joked.

The guys laughed. "This day is important, it's Liy and Johns day." She said, making sure the others looked fine, checking their ties, hair and buttons. "Neat freak." A voice said, pulling us away from Annabeth's grooming. Thalia smirked at Annabeth. "I should have left ith you earlier, I can't stand the smell of perfume right now." She said.

"I'm not a neat freak." Annabeth said, annoyed. Thalia raised an eyebrow. "Oh ya? You told me my color co ordination of my pencil crayons was wrong in kindergarten." She said, laughing.

We all laughed, a red Annabeth quiet as a mouse. "So now what? I don't even get kisses?" I joked, smilin at Annabeth. She put her finger to my lips and said, "No, their is plenty of time after the wedding." She said, sarcastically. I laughed and we all greeted a few more guests.

I had to try stifle a laugh as an elderly couple came in. John and Frank had already gone to the altar. "Oh Annabeth dear!" The old lady said. "Hi granny Pat." She said, sweetly. Pat smiled at Annabeth.

"You've grown up so much my dear! The last time I saw you you were six and you were leaving for San Franisco the next day. " Pat said. "I remember, you gave me that little necklace." Annabeth said, smiling. The lady patted her hand and looked at Thalia. She sighed with a smile.

"We finally got you to wear a dress." Se said, smiling at Thalia. We all laughed. "Well I'll see you sweeties sometime today again." She said, then walked off with her husband. "And the sweet Annabeth prevails." Thalia joked. "Hey! She's really nice!" Annabeth protested.

Soon all the other girls revived and we all got redy to walk down the aisle. I linked rms with Annabeth. "You sure,you not nervous? Could cure it with a kiss." I said. She laughed nd Sid right next to my ear ever so softly, "We'll see at the reception." I hated how she tempted me so much.

The wedding was amazing, going smoothly. When we got to reception, we watched as they started off the first dance, then were required to join. I swayed back and forth, my forehead against Annabeth's.

"You're beautiful." I said, smiling at her. She chuckled and said, "You're handsome." I smiled and kissed her nose. After a while, everyone joined and we all went for pictures.

Annabeth and I stood next to John. I had to stand behind her, my rms round her waist and our fingers laced. Her back against my chest sent goosebumps down my spine. We had a couple pictures done all together, then the bridesmaids had to go have a picture taken in the garden area.

They all had to have there backs to the photographer and look over their shoulders, as they stood with the bride. We had one with all the groomsmen nd the groom. Then lily and John ha a couple ones on their own. They looked so happy together, it made me smile.

I wrapped my arms around Annabeth's waist as we watched as they were hang hoots and the parents joining. She turned to face me. She leaned forward, kissing me. I returned it, lacing our fingers. It was so beautiful, the sun streaming through the trees.

We heard a flash go off and turned to see Evan and Troy with the photographers camera. We all laughed and went back inside. It was a airy ale ending. At the end of the wedding, we helped Lily and John clean up.

There were presents we helped them with and what not. Annabeth was quite tired so I let her crash at my place. She had some spare clothes with her so hanged into them while I changed.

When I came out my en suite bathroom, Annabeth was standing at the door. "I'm cold." She said, a smile on her face. I smiled and she came over to me. We got in the bed nd I pulled her back to my chest. I wrapped an rm around her waist and drifted off to the rising off her chest.


	8. Return

Annabeth's POV

I laced my fingers with Percy's as we walked down the road. We were eating ho dogs and were going to get slushies afterwards. "This is going to be a well spent two month anniversary." I joked, smiling at him.

He laughed and kissed my cheek. "Definitely." He said. We ate and walked down the street. We received smiles from passing people, greeted a couple people we knew.

John and Lily had loved their weddin and honeymoon so much. I was really happy that it went as planned. They were living happily in their new house together.

We had a lovely afternoon, talking and laughing and what not. But it was all ruined when we went out for a drink with Percy and my friends. I couldn't have thought it could have gotten worse.

It was Percy, John, Lily, Evan, His girlfriend Olivia, Piper, Jason, Hazel, Frank and myself. We were having a drink together, laughing at Evans jokes. Then I heard my name called by a voice I knew way too well. Luke's.

~Line Break~(Would have had it as a short chappie for emphasis but let's hear about this.)

I looked up and saw his face. He hadn't changed at all. Scar still there, same blonde hair, same dull eyes, same everything. But his eyes showed about of pain. "What are you doing here?" I said, finally finding my voice. "Can we talk?" He asked.

"I don't want to talk to you. Why did you come here?" I asked, my tone cold. "Please Annie-" he said. "Don't call me that." I retorted, sternly. He sighed. "I don't want to talk." I said. I saw Percy piecing things together at the corner of my eye.

"Annabeth. It's one simple thing." He said again. "She said she doesn't want to talk, so please leave." Percy said, sternly. "I wasn't talking to you." Luke said, annoyance in his voice.

Percy stood up and looked down at Luke. I got nervous and stood up as well. "Percy." I warned him. "I asked you to leave, don't make me ask you again." Percy said, his tone icy.

"Who do you think you are?" Luke asked, eyeing Percy. "Luke, stop it." I said. "Annabeth, I just want to talk." He said, turning to me, the softness back in his face. All I felt was anger bubbling in me.

"Why? I don't need you bothering me." I said. He sighed and looked me in the eye. "Please, it will take a minute." He said. He set my jaw and sighed. "Fine." I said. Luke walked towards the door, and I was about to follow by Percy grabbed my hand. "Annabeth, what if he tries something?" He whispered.

"I'll make sure he doesn't." I said. He eyed me unconvinced. "Annabeth, you don't have to." Piper said, looking uneasy. "Piper, I need to get him over and done with, or he'll try find me again." I said.

Percy gave my hand one last squeeze then I went. Luke was waiting outside. "What?" I asked, my tone hard. He sighed and said, "I made a mistake." I furrowed my brows and wrinkled my nose. "And you didn't know that?" I asked.

"I should never have done that, but I really love you.i haven't gone one day without thinking about you." He said. "Basically what I'm asking, is for another chance."

He tried to take my hand but I stepped away from him. "Another chance?" I asked, incredulously. "Why would I ever think of that? You ruined my life! I got over you a few weeks after I found out your plan, but I'm still trying to find my dignity and pride." I said, spitting with rage.

"What I did was wrong. I thought if I could get some money I could get us an apartment, maybe even propose to you wih a good ring." He said, stepping forward to me.

"You're a monster." I said, raising my voice. "I sure as hell won't give you another chance!" I said. I gave him a look, making sure he saw my anger and rage. "Annabeth, I still love you." He said. "You never loved me! What about your one night stands while I was still around?" I said, huffing.

"Look, I don't expect you to forgive me right now, I know you're probably cross to see me again. All I'm asking is for you to think out it. I finish my business here in two weeks then am going back to Frisco. If you hage your mind, you can come back with me." He said, taking my hand in his.

I pulled it away sharply and said, "I have a boyfriend! He is nothing like you, he actually loves me! I will never come back with you!" I screamed at him,then walked passed him, down the road to my car.

I got in and drove home. When I got to Percys apartment, I told him I would wait for him to come home and tell him. He soon came and found me on his bed.

I was facing the glass walls that overlooked the city. My back was to him. "What did he do?" Percy asked, coming over and sitting in front of me. I looked at him.

"He wants me to give him a second chance, to mve back with him." I croaked out, still trying to control all my anger. Percy furrowed his eyebrows, trying hard to show his rage. "Ad what did you say?" He asked.

I looked at him as if he were on fire. "I'm staying here with you! Wy would you think any different?" I asked. He sighed with relief and wrapped me in his arms. "But how an he say he loves me? Admit to what he did? Say all those things?" I asked.

I felt him stiffen against me as my voice came it funny as if I were confused. "You still care about him." Percy whispered, pulling away and looking at me. "No, I don't. I love you." I said, taking his hands in mine.

"Don't expect you not to care, I just want to know you'll stay with me., he said, his voice rough. "Percy, I will never leave you. I don't care about Luke, I care about you." I said.

He nodded and looked down. I touched his face and he looked up."Trust me," I said, then kisse him. He kissed back and I pulled away. It still bothered me, but I was happy I had Percy with me.


	9. Return part 2

Percy's POV

I had been worried about this Luke guy. What if he found Annabeth when I wasn't around? I knew she was capable of looking after herself, I'm just concerned.

I left my apartment and drove to work. I decided to get it off my mind by burying myself in my work. Only worked till two so when I left, I went out for lunch.

I went to Starbucks and sat down, ordering a toasted sandwich and some coffee. I had a few bites of my sandwich when I got interrupted. I looked up and saw Luke. "Can I sit?" He asked.

I shrugged, feeling unsure about him. He sat down and propped his elbows n the edge of the table across from me. I put my sandwich to the side and looked at him. "Who are you to Annabeth?" He asked.

"I'm her boyfriend." I said, still wary of this guy. "Her boyfriend? Wow, she picked you?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?" I asked. "She would never have talked to someone like you." He said.

I was really confused. He must have seen it in my face as he explained. "You aren't like someone she would have hung out with. You're tall and you look different, you got her to go to a bar, you're overprotective."

I stifled an irritated groan and bjeced to narrowing my eyes. "I don't want you around Annabeth, I don't want you lookin or talking to her." I said, my tone cold. "You don't control me." He retorted.

I gave him a steely look and kept my voice low. "I don't want to draw attention here. I do not want you to bother her. If she tells me ou did, I swear I will make sure you hurt just as much as you made her hurt.

He stared at me for a bit then cleared his throat and stood up. "Nice seeing you." He said, then left. I sighed and finished my lunch. I paid for it and left.

As I drove to my apartment I thought about Luke. What if Annabeth still loved him? I would let her go but it would hurt so bad. If I lost Annabeth to a guy that made her feel stupid, I would lose it.

When I got home, I had a shower and got into clean clothes. There was a ring at my door at about six o clock. I wondered who it would be.

I answered it and was met with the main stream of my thoughts. "Can I come I? I got pizza and a movie?" Annabeth asked, smiling at me. I chuckled and let her in. She went and put the pizza and movie down in the lounge.

Se turned and laced her fingers with mine. I smiled down at her and she smiled back. I cupped her cheek and kissed her. She kissed back and smiled into the kiss. We both sat down on the floor with our backs up against the couch. We put the movie in and started eating the pizza.

She leaned into my side as we watched the movie I wasn't paying attention to. I just was happy to have Annabeth at my side. Halfway through the movie she turned to me. She still had our fingers laced.

I leaned down and kissed her. She cupped my cheek, kissing me back. I twirled her hair in my fingers as we kissed. She smiled and pulled away. "Never gets old." She mumbled, still smiling with her hand on my chest.

I smiled and pulled her closer to my side. "I saw Luke today." I said, snapped back to reality. She stiffened next to me. "What happened." She demanded. "Nothing, I just said I don't want him hanging around you as he makes you cross and angry with yourself." I said.

She looked up at me. "Percy, I don't need looking after." She said, pulling away a bit. I sighed and looked down at where she had unlaced our fingers. "Annabeth, I'm just worried. I don't want him trying anything."

She rolled her eyes nd said, "I can look after myself, I'm not stupid." I furrowed my eyebrows. "Why do you think I think that?" I asked. "Because you obviously don't think I can watch out for myself." She said with an annoyed tone.

"I know you can, I'm just being a good boyfriend. I just want you to be happy." I said. She looked a little cross now. "I'm already happy. You don't need to be the overprotective boyfriend, who checks up on what I'm doing and doesn't like me having guy friends." She said.

"Annabeth, am I not allowed to show I care?" I asked. "Am I not allowed to be free of being treated like a weak little girl?" She said, standing up. I stood up and caught her wrist as she started to walk to the door.

"I don't want help, I just want to forget him. But if you keep mentioning it, I'm going to get even more annoyed." She said, turning to me. "Then how can I show I care and love you if you want let me?" I asked.

"You figure it out." She said, her tone angry. She pulled her wrist away and left my apartment. I felt my heart tear a little. Why won't she let me help?

Maybe I should just let her take care of it, not be so concerned. I cleaned up, the weight on my heart even heavier as I got in bed. Not having Annabeth with me felt bad, having her angry with me made you feel guilty.


	10. Chapter 10

Annabeths POV

I had been upset and off all week. How could Percy think I need taken care of? I am a grown women, I don't need people telling me the do's and don'ts.

Percy isn't involved in this. Or is he? I'm not sure, but I still don't need him thinking I need protection. I don't.

But the truth is, I would be lying if I didn't say I missed him like crazy. I didn't answer any of his calls, I didn't talk to him about it. I had gone almost five whole days without seeing him.

I was thinking of this as I walked down the street towards Starbucks. I went in and ordered a coffee and muffin. I ate my muffin and drank my coffee in gloom.

Are we broken up? I thought. I furrowed my eyebrows thinking of it. No we aren't, we are just taking a break. Yeah, that's it. A temporary break.

But it still left me feeling upset and angry while I sat in the popular cafe. I payed for my things and just sat in the booth outside. I got up and started walking out the cafe. When I reached the door, I opened it and was met with the chilly weather and I knocked into someone.

"Sorry." I said, then looked up. I felt my heart lurch and my knees weaken. "Percy." I said, breathlessly. He furrowed his eyebrows, gave a nod and arrived on walking down the street.

I caught up to him, confusion still on my face. "Just because I'm angry with you doesn't mean that we can't still great each other!" I said, walking next to him. He huffed and looked down at me.

"Oh, so you're done giving me the silent treatment?" He asked, annoyance in his voice. I rolled my eyes and said, "I'm angry, not having verbal constipation."

We neared the car park. "Oh yeah, you're angry at me for something that comes with having a boyfriend." He said, still walking. "Percy, I just need you to tell me that you understand what I'm cross about, then we can go back to being us."

He rolled his eyes and said, "So there is actually still sometin between us?" I gaped a bit. "Why wouldn't there be?" I asked. "Well I can't do this, can't be a boyfriend if you won't let me care. Not caring, is not loving. " He said, staring me in the eyes, then going off to his car and leaving.

I furrowed my eyebrows. How could I go without Percy? Was I maybe taking this slightly incorrectly? Well if he isn't going to say anything, maybe I need to do something. But how?


	11. Chapter 11

Percys POV

I lay on my couch in my penthouse. I really missed having Annabeth around, but I also was cross with her. I didn't understand why she wouldn't let me help. I know it's her business, but I'm supposed to be there for her.

I heard the doorbell and got up to answer. When I answered it, there was Clark and Evan. Me and the guys were having a guys night at my place, as we hadnt had one in a while.

Whe they all arrived we relaxed in my lounge with a beer. "So I had a great week!" Evan said, smiling like an idiot. "I got a number from this girl who was Spanish, we had a drink than she gave me the number of her twin sister. Ended up not calling either of them after a drink but still was the highlight of my week.

We all laughed at him. John was studying me from across the lounge. "Percy, can I ask you something?" He said, but in a tone like he was a brother in law or something. "Yeah, sure." I asked.

He sighed and scratched his head. "What happened with the Luke situation?" He asked. They all looked at me, kind of wary. I sighed and rubbed my forhead.

"He wanted her back but she said no or whatever. I kind of bumped into him and told him not to bother or try anything with her and when I told her she got mad. She said I shouldn't have gotten into the business of it, and she left." I said, and shrugged.

"So what? You two broke up?" Clark asked, shocked. "Look, I saw her last week and she said she just wanted me to not get into it and we must pass it over and I kind of said that we couldn't be together if she wouldn't let me be there for her." I said, then took a sip of my drink.

John studied my face. "You're missing her like mad." He said, a slight smirk on his face. "Why would you say that?" I challenged. "Percy, one you're all alone in here. Two, you are extremely loyal to all your friends. And three, you fell for her." He said, waiting for me to fall under it and say that all of that was true.

"Maybe, but we're not getting together if she doesn't accept that I want to be there for her." I said. Troy sighed. "Percy, come on." He said. I shrugged. "When last did you phone or message her?" John asked. "Before she got cross with me." I said. The door rang and Clark stood up. "I'll get it." He said, going that way.

He came back with our pizza's. I had my phone on the coffee table, in huge middle of the room. It buzzed as a message came through. I looked at the guys and they looked at me. I tried to get my phone quickly but Evan got to it first.

He opened it, and sent a glance my way. "Um." He said, scratching his head. "It's from Annabeth." He said. I nodded and let him say what the message said. "Can we talk is all it says." He said.

I got my phone and put it in my pocket. "So what? You not going to reply?" John asked. "Nope, this is guys night." I said, being my stubborn self. "Percy, she really needs someone like you to-" he started but I cleared my throat. "Can we not talk about this?" I asked, and went to get plates for them.

We went back to our normal selves and they didn't mention it, but I knew they were still thinking about it. The door bell rang and Clark said he would answer it. We waited a but then he came back. "Someone's here to see you." He said.

I stood as I saw Annabeth come in. "Hi." She said, waving at the guys. They all smiled at her and took out their phones, making themselves busy. I nodded and she followed me to the kitchen.

Although they could still see us, they couldn't hear us. "I wanted to talk about us." She started. "I'm really sorry for getting cross with you when you were just trying to be a good boyfriend. I shouldn't have, and it was wrong of me." We both looked up as Clark came to us while the others got their stuff.

"We 're gonna go home, leave you guys to talk." He said. They all left and we were alone. "When I bumped into you and saw how angry it made you, I realized how stupid I was. Percy, I really like you- and I don't want to lose you. Please accept my apology." She said.

I looked at her for a moment then sighed. I couldn't resist. I stepped forward, cupping her cheek and kissed her. Her hand cupped my cheek and we pulled away. "John was right, I have fallen for you." I said. We both laughed and then I kissed her again, having missed it so much.


End file.
